brisbanetimes.com.au urban affairs reporter and blogger

City Hall is keen to see Wi-Fi in cafes and restaurants across Brisbane, but small business owners will have to foot the bill, as Lord Mayor Graham Quirk is offering little more than $3000 worth of window stickers by way of support.

Angry hospitality figures say the campaign – launched today as part of the city's developing Digital Strategy – is a waste of money that will hurt their bottom line.

Gunshop Cafe owner Jason Coolen said many restaurants already had Wi-Fi as part of their business systems, but they didn't advertise the fact to avoid being exploited by customers.

"We're happy to have business people use our Wi-Fi for business meetings and the like, and it's fine for customers who're just looking for basic services, but we can't afford to have people come in and download movies and eat up our data," Mr Coolen said.

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"They should be focusing on eating their food and drink and having a conversation with friends anyway. I think this policy is just another cost put on the hospitality industry by council, they should subsidise the Wi-Fi if they were serious about this, not just give out stickers."

But Cr Quirk defended the initiative, saying it wasn't compulsory for businesses to sign-up. The Wi-Fi policy and stickers were designed to bring extra trade to cafes and restaurants and would help boost Brisbane's reputation as a "switched on city", he said.

The announcement follows figures released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics yesterday showing spending at cafes and restaurants fell from July to October, the first quarterly drop in more than a year.

Restaurateurs critical of the scheme's likely impact on phone and internet bills should "toughen up" Cr Quirk said, confirming council would not extend the free Wi-Fi already offered across public spaces as part of the plan.

"When the going gets tough, the tough get going," he said. "These free Wi-Fi stickers give businesses another chance to say we're a friendly, digital business, come in and do some business with us.

"Why should the ratepayers be up for the cost of those things when we can do it in partnership with business? I think this is the sensible way to go."

The Wi-Fi drive will see participating businesses would receive a high visibility sticker for their shopfront and their location promoted via a free listing on a Google map of ‘Brisbanewi-fi hot-spots’. The businesses will also be included on the Digital Brisbane website.

Cr Quirk said the policy worked along similar lines to the city's Food Safe initiative, in which operators consent to having their council-issued food standards ratings published on a website for the benefit of diners.

But Mr Coolen said even Food Safe was problematic.

"It still costs us money on top of what we already pay to council in terms of licensing and foot path dining," he said. "It's just another cash-gouge from council – and even more stickers we're supposed to now plaster all over our windows and doors.

"If council was serious about helping small businesses there are better ways to do it."

Another CBD cafe owner – who did not wish to be named – said she could see the merit of offering Wi-Fi to customers, but that most outlets could little afford the extra cost.

"It'd be different if council helped support the program by offering to pay for some of the downloading that would go on," she said.

"If we've got a digital strategy, surely more public Wi-Fi would be a top priority."

Cr Quirk said that the cafe initiative was just one aspect of a strategy that would be revealed in full early next year.

The man responsible for the development of that strategy, Brisbane's chief digital officer Kieran O'Hea, said Brisbane businesses had some way to go in terms of recognising the economic potential of the internet.

He said the push for small businesses to install Wi-Fi for customers was an important part of bringing Brisbane to the forefront of the digital economy.

"I think today we're acknowledging a similar-minded group of people – basically people who are going out, installing Wi-Fi at their own cost, to keep customers, attract customers, and basically promote their business – and I hope other people follow their lead," he said.

"We need to develop a digital culture where everyone is getting involved – but we'll be doing bigger, far-reaching projects down the track."

16 comments

Lord Qiuirk who has never been business in his life tells small business owners to quote " toughen up" . It may be easier to " toughen up" if patrons weren't being gouged for money as they parked before even entering a restaurant or cafe.

Commenter

Ray Smith

Date and time

December 04, 2012, 2:29PM

It's not a terrible idea, but wouldn't that Council money be far better spent on their public hotspots?

They seem to have stuck a few wireless points up in parks and gone "well, that's enough!" when there are dozens of other places that could use the free wi-fi, or you know - finish giving coverage to those parks in the first place. How about the Queen St Mall, and I can even think of three appropriate, powered, sheltered, Council-owned etc. places for the access points...

Commenter

Michael

Location

Brisbane

Date and time

December 04, 2012, 2:35PM

Then when they raise rates to pay for it all, people will complain and say it's a waste of money for a service that only benefits well-to-do people with laptops and smartphones. Then what? Enterprise-grade wifi does not come cheap.

Commenter

ek

Date and time

December 04, 2012, 7:57PM

There was a time where I would gravitate to establishments with wi-fi to conserve my stingy data allowance. But nowadays, the standard data packs you get with a phone or tablet are pretty generous. This surely reduces any dependence on restaurant/cafe wifi. Especially if we limit ourselves to low-bandwidth operations: tweets, simple email, facebook check-ins, etc.

Commenter

ajr

Location

Brisbane

Date and time

December 04, 2012, 2:35PM

This is a typical LNP rouse, promote something and say look like we have done. Then say there you go business you pay for it and we will take the credit. Be it Local Government or State Government it is all the same. Hopefully people will wake up and not elect a Abbott LMP government or we will see a greater increase in this type of promotion.

Commenter

Scarboroughjohn

Location

Nudgee

Date and time

December 04, 2012, 3:41PM

Unlike our Labor friends who think they can spend , spend, spend and never have to pay anything back.

Commenter

User Pays

Date and time

December 05, 2012, 3:53AM

What a bunch of moronic people are the cited cafe owners.

Right across Europe and Asia, cafes and restaurants offer wifi.

BUT...

Each provides a password for entry - and that is only ever given with an order.

Most change the password daily.

If those clowns had a clue, they'd employ a third party to offer access with a time and/or download limit on customer wifi use.

Goes to show how technologically illiterate some proprietors really are.

Cheers

Commenter

Dalliance

Date and time

December 04, 2012, 3:57PM

Yeah there are wifi hot spot systems that can generate a ticket that allows usage for e.g. half an hour. It's probably too expensive for small businesses to implement here though, thanks to high labour costs (maintenance plans, etc) and limited knowledge on the field. That, coupled with, as you say, owners who aren't IT savvy, means it's easier for them to just close their eyes.

After all, isn't the target market for these cafes, iphone-toting people with large incomes who already have good data plans? :)

Commenter

ek

Date and time

December 04, 2012, 8:04PM

Typical of the LNP, yes they run the council too, want everything to look and smelllike roses, as long as somebody else pays.

Commenter

CURLYONE

Date and time

December 04, 2012, 4:01PM

That's standard conservative ideology - get the private sector to pay for everything then claim the credit for being good managers.